Entries in ehealth gamification
(1)

EveryMove Rewards for EngagementPremera Blue Cross’s subsidiary, LifeWise Health Plan of Washington has partnered with an innovative healthcare technology company, EveryMove to motivate and reward their members for being active.

When the program launches early this year, members will be invited to join the EveryMove program and track their activity to receive points which accumulate for rewards. The EveryMove program gives members points when they are active in different ways; from walking, biking and swimming to playing the Wii Fit or Kinect to checking- in (i.e. gym, track, park, pool).

“By helping people be more active, EveryMove has the potential over time to lower costs and, in general, lower costs will lead to a positive effect on premiums,” Jeff Roe, CEO of LifeWise Health Plan of Washington recently shared in a Fox News interview.

Initially, Premera’s LifeWise will reward members for their physical activity with Amazon Gift Cards when reaching target point levels. “The great thing about EveryMove is that it applies to all of our members, whether they are part of an employer group or an individual plan. As part of our ongoing work with EveryMove, we are interested in becoming a companion in the day-to-day lives of our members”, explains Kent Marquardt, CFO at Premera Blue Cross.

EveryMove was launched last Fall at the Health 2.0 conference in San Francisco and is designed to make it easy for consumers to get both recognition and reward for their physical activity. EveryMove gives members credit for many different types of activity beyond the usual walking and running, such as biking, swimming and even dancing.

“Success for Premera, in terms of our relationship with EveryMove, is ultimately showing that our members’ healthy activities are reducing their healthcare costs and the healthcare costs for the entire system. In the near term, our focus is on engagement. We want to make sure our members are responding to the opportunity to be recognized for their healthy lifestyle activities and that our members see us as a partner in obtaining better health”, adds Marquardt.

EveryMove Engagement

After reviewing the EveryMove program through the eyes of the consumer, here are some key engagement drivers that I see. Health Plans have the opportunity to customize these engagement capabilities to meet the needs of their specific members.

Easy Tracking with Options for “Proof of Activity”: Consumers can automatically track and upload their activity on EveryMove with one of 10 different devices including FitBit, Nike+ and BodyMedia. Consumers are rewarded with additional points when using one of these “proof of activity” devices, although they also have the option to manually enter their activities.

Social Motivation & Gain: EveryMove gives users the option of tying into their Facebook network and inviting others via email for friendly competition. Currently, users can invite up to 50 friends with EveryMove to share their lifestyle changes with their select group. Unlike other wellness programs that I’ve seen, consumers can earn “Friends points” when their social network is active too. This is a positive spin on Christakis's “Connected” social influence.

Rewards for Reinforcement: Each participant can select the reward that she would like to work towards such as a gift card from the featured merchant or a donation to the Make a Wish Foundation. When the member logs in, she sees an ongoing tracking of her points towards the selected reward for ongoing motivation.

Intensity- Driven Rewards: With EveryMove, users are given more points when completing a more intense workout. This differs from most wellness programs which reward consumers based on the number of steps regardless of their pace.

Milestone Rewards: EveryMove presents a Facebook like personalized page with a timeline format to display their activity information and that of their friends on EveryMove. Just by moving, the user can be rewarded with bonus points and thumbs up; for “moving for an hour”, an “active day” and the “4th active day this week”. EveryMove plans to introduce more milestone driven recognition in the coming year.

Gamification & Unlocking Rewards: Within EveryMove, the user sees the opportunity to unlock a new reward which generates curiosity and motivation to continue coming back for more. (Notice the big lock in the picture above)

Health Plan Opportunity for Member Engagement

With health reform and insurance exchanges around the corner, health plans are actively searching for ways to build relationships with their members and to be viewed as a health partner and not just an insurance company. Health plans also want to provide wellness initiatives that will attract and support consumers who are interested in maintaining their health.

Although they can sign up online for EveryMove without going through their health plan, consumers have an opportunity to gain more value if their health plan incorporates rewards into a comprehensive wellness program. I can envision health plans using a platform like EveryMove to motivate and reward members for every type of healthy behavior including taking an assessment, getting a screening, participating in a social activity challenge with co-workers, going to the gym or working with a health coach to lose weight or manage diabetes.

This is in fact the direction that I see innovative health plans moving in this new year. Payers are most interested in engaging consumers in their health and are looking for ways to sustain engagement through motivation and rewards. A few enlightened health plans want to tap into and leverage their member’s social network to influence and reinforce healthy behaviors.